North Dakota school stops using 'time out' room

May 8, 2012

LEEDS (AP) - The public school in the northeastern North Dakota town of Leeds has stopped using a "time out" room after complaints from parents.

School officials say the small room was a safe place for unruly students, but some parents tell WDAZ-TV that teachers were locking children in what amounts to a closet.

Mother Brittany Mears says her kindergarten-age son was put in the room and was upset. Mother Leaha Kitzmann says if parents put their children in such rooms at home, they would be in trouble.

Superintendent Charles Dunlop says the carpeted room was the safest place for out-of-control students. Benson County Sheriff Steve Rohrer says his department looked into the issue and found no wrongdoing. But school officials have stopped using the room anyway and have removed the door.